Elon Musk and Sam Altman are heading into a major courtroom battle as a federal jury prepares to hear claims that Altman betrayed the original mission of OpenAI.
The trial begins with jury selection in Oakland, California, and focuses on whether OpenAI moved away from its nonprofit roots to become a massive commercial company now valued at around $852 billion.
Musk, who helped co-found OpenAI in 2015 and provided early funding, filed the lawsuit in August 2024 against Altman, OpenAI president Greg Brockman, and the company itself. He claims OpenAI’s leadership secretly changed direction and turned the organization into a profit-focused business tied to large investors, including Microsoft.
OpenAI has rejected the accusations, calling the lawsuit baseless and saying Musk’s actions are driven by competition after launching rival AI company xAI in 2023.
The lawsuit asks for governance changes at OpenAI, including removing Altman from the board, along with financial compensation that would go to OpenAI’s nonprofit arm. Musk had originally sought damages of more than $100 billion, but that amount was reduced after pre-trial rulings.
The case is expected to bring testimony from Musk and Altman, two of the tech world’s most influential and controversial figures whose partnership has now turned into a public legal fight.
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The trial will be overseen by Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, while the jury will provide an advisory decision. Musk says the lawsuit is about protecting OpenAI’s founding purpose, while the company argues its commercial shift was necessary to stay competitive in the fast-moving AI race.
